The Second Strongest Has Returned

Chapter 44

Magic Tower

“Ugh… Ah…!”

With a loud noise, Leonardo woke up from the coffin made of books.

[You’re awake? That was quick.]

Whether facing a Nightmare, a Black Mage, or even being subjected to hallucinogens and sleeping drugs, Leo had developed various resistance methods and countermeasures.

He still had three or four other methods left, aside from the one he used in the dream. However, all of them were risky, so he refrained from using them unless necessary.

[Still, I’m surprised. I thought you’d last at least five minutes.]

Under normal circumstances, it would indeed have taken well over five minutes, just as the Sage had mentioned. In the dream, Leonardo had completely forgotten the Sage’s existence, and even the memory of the trial had been erased. If it weren’t for his experience with regression, not even Leonardo would have been able to escape from the dream.

The Sage looked around at the others who were lying on the ground.

[They’re still asleep, but don’t worry. As long as one person succeeds, everyone will wake up. In the meantime, you should collect your rewards.]

At the mention of the rewards, Leonardo looked around to find the trial’s compensation.

[What are you talking about? You’re already holding it.]

At those words, Leonardo looked at his own hand. He was holding a necklace connected by a silver chain. The jewel in the center resembled an eye’s iris due to the black mass at its core.

[Once you clear the trial, it goes straight to your hand so you don’t lose it.]

Why such a meticulous detail wasn’t applied in the first trial would probably remain an unsolved mystery, even after centuries of research.

“Ugh… Ah…?”

With a posture resembling a zombie, Ameri rose from her coffin. The lingering pain from her untreated injuries was still evident in her body.

[Just to be sure, you’re not undead, right?]

And upon graduation, one becomes a transcendent being—if they manage to graduate, that is.

“Huh…?! We succeeded?!”

Rubbing her slightly lightened dark circles, she looked at the necklace in Leo’s hand.

“Yes, I was lucky.”

“That… That’s the ‘Pendant of Truth and Fact’!!”

He already knew that. After all, he had aimed for it.

-Pendant of Truth and Fact-

When worn, this pendant nullifies lies and allows one to see through low-level illusions, phantoms, and disguises. It was a useful tool, which is why Leonardo prioritized obtaining this magical item.

“Shall we try it on?”

“Is it safe…? What if it’s like that ring…?”

Ameri raised her hand to show the ring that was hindering her love life.

“It should be fine. I think it’s different from that.”

[…To begin with, that ring isn’t a cursed magical item.]

The plain ring and the protective ring created by the Sage weren’t cursed items that had to be worn forever. It was simply one aspect of its healing function that was manifesting in an extreme way.

[Unless it’s at the level of a drug addiction, that ring will come off. Just to be safe, I added a function that keeps it fixed in place until the healing process is complete.]

It would take at least a year for all of those to heal. And that’s assuming she leads a healthy lifestyle while wearing the ring.

“…How is it? Do you feel any effects?”

“Give me a moment.”

Leonardo carefully fastened the pendant around his neck and first looked at the Sage, who was the user of the item.

[Ah, just so you know, it doesn’t work on me.]

The most important reason for getting the pendant was now gone. Though he felt the urge to stomp the ground in frustration, he had no choice but to try it on someone else.

“Ameri.”

“Yes?”

“How are you feeling right now? Are you okay?”

[That’s a vague question, so it won’t work well. If it were a lie, the pendant would emit a red light, but saying you’re okay is too subjective…]

As the Sage pointed out, Leo realized that his question wasn’t the best. Still, he wanted to give it a shot, just in case.

“Yes, I’m fine.”

Ziiing

Suddenly, red beams of light scattered in multiple directions from the pendant. It was a dazzling flash that could easily compete with the light of flames or the sun in the sky.

[…Uh… Normally, it shouldn’t react like this… And this level of light wouldn’t appear unless it was a pretty significant lie…]

The Sage nodded while looking sympathetically at the poor slave of the Magic Tower.

“Um… Is it supposed to do this?”

“Seems like it. The reaction is clear enough.”

“…Well, that’s a relief, I guess…”

Ameri looked at Ariasphil with a puzzled concern.

“Ariasphil isn’t waking up. Even with such a strong light just now…”

Just as Ameri said, Ariasphil was still completely motionless, deeply asleep.

[That’s strange. Normally, she should have woken up by now, unless she’s particularly attached to the dream… Hey… Don’t tell me…]

There was something ominous in the Sage’s trailing words.

<…Don’t tell me it’s that?>

[Uh… Sorry, but… I think it is.]

Ameri shook Ariasphil by the shoulders, but the girl only smiled strangely and didn’t wake up.

“…What should we do? Should we try waking her up more forcefully…?”

[You can’t do that. Forcing her awake could have a negative impact on her mind, and we can’t be sure she’d fully wake up either.]

Hearing that, Leo quickly shook his head and pulled Ameri away from Ariasphil.

[Don’t blame me. I did set up a safety mechanism.]

Surprisingly, the Sage wasn’t lying.

If one failed or if someone else succeeded first, a huge door would appear in the dream.

It had “The trial is over, so come out.” written boldly on it, making it easy to realize it was a dream and providing a straightforward way to escape.

Ameri had escaped in the same way.

[I told you, it’s because she’s fixated on the dream!]

Unfortunately, reality was exactly as grim as that statement implied.

<…So, what should we do? Is waiting not an option?>

[If you’re lucky, that might work… but it’s not something you can count on. There’s even a chance she could become more immersed in the dream.]

Leonardo agreed. Having frequently dealt with nightmares and illusions, he understood the advice.

<…Then is there any way to wake her up?>

[There is, but it’s more complicated than you think. If you try it, you won’t come out unscathed either… Are you okay with that?]

The Sage reluctantly nodded, as if giving in, and explained the method.

[…This is it… but are you sure you want to go through with it? As you’ve seen, I can’t help you in this dream. I set it up that way…]

Leonardo steeled himself and called out to Ameri.

“Ameri, I need your help with something.”

* * *

“…Are you sure this is really going to work?”

Ameri asked anxiously, placing her hands on both Leo’s and Arias’ heads.

“Yes, with a telepathy spell, it should connect our minds, even in a dream.”

Telepathy, a 4th Circle spell, was primarily used for communication and the transmission of information. But according to the Sage’s advice, with a slight adjustment to the spell formula, it could also reach the unconscious realm of dreams.

“It’s true that this modification makes it possible… but it could be dangerous for Leonardo. Besides, I’m not very skilled with telepathy…”

“It’s fine. I’ll handle whatever happens.”

“B-But…”

Ameri hesitated. With her naturally gentle personality and strong sense of guilt, she found it hard to take on such a burdensome task.

“I’m sorry for asking this of you.”

Leonardo bowed deeply to Ameri.

“But please, I can’t lose Arias like this.”

Was it simply a sense of responsibility as her knight? Or was it the determination of someone who had always chased after her, the second best? Or perhaps it was the guilt of a boy who couldn’t bear the thought of a girl dying.

But there was one thing for sure.

“Alright. I’ll do my best.”

Ameri resolved herself as she spread the magic circle across her hands. She slowly calibrated the double casting required for telepathy and said,

“I’m starting. Please, make sure you succeed.”

Once the spell formula was fully calibrated, Leonardo’s eyes closed.

…

……

……….

The chirping of mountain birds echoed around him.

Naturally, Leo’s closed eyes began to flutter before they opened.

“…Where is this…?”

It seemed he had succeeded. Contrary to her initial lack of confidence, the telepathy calibration had been quite smooth, and he even retained his memories from before the connection.

“…Now, I just need to find Arias…”

Clang!!

Just as he was about to search for her, a loud crash echoed through the area. Judging by the sound, it was the clash of swords—a familiar noise from when he and Arias had sparred.

“…No way…”

Leo quickly ran toward the source of the clashing swords.

Clang!!

“Ugh!”

At the scene, two knights—one in black and one in white—were engaged in combat. But the situation was not what Leonardo had expected.

“What’s wrong? You’re losing your strength!!”

The one delivering a relentless barrage of strikes was none other than Leo himself. The one struggling to block the attacks was Arias.

“…Please… stop… I can’t… do this anymore…”

While Leo did possess the strength to defeat Arias, he was never able to overwhelm her to such an extent.

This wasn’t just an idle thought; it was an observation based on his experiences in reality.

‘…Why… why is she… losing like this…?’

He couldn’t understand. Arias had always been noble and proud.

To him, Arias had been that kind of figure, and it was because of her that he had made it this far.

Clang!!

“Haaah…!”

At that moment, Arias’s sword was knocked high into the air.

Seeing that scene, something clicked in Leonardo’s mind.

‘…This is just like me…’

It was similar to what had happened when he had been tormented by a Nightmare.

That Nightmare, instead of showing sweet dreams, had presented him with a despair-filled nightmare.

That cunning demon had realized that despair, not hope, was what people fell into more deeply.

‘…This is because I won…’

The dream Leonardo had been trapped in was a nightmare where he constantly lost to Arias—a seemingly endless cycle of unnatural events. The despair etched into those defeats had been so deep that it made him forget he was even dreaming.

So much so that if he hadn’t taken his own life within the dream, escape would have been impossible.

Such is the nature of inferiority—it’s an emotion that’s easily provoked and magnified.

‘Because I won that duel…’

Arias must have believed firmly that she was a genius. It was true, and in her previous life, she had indeed lived as one.

‘But… not anymore. Now…’

He had shattered that belief and pride.

All because he wanted to win.

Regardless of Arias’s character, that victory had become a catalyst for her inferiority complex.

It was a humiliating shock, especially for a genius who had never known defeat.

‘…I… I was the cause…’

Leonardo felt nauseated with himself for not realizing this sooner.

He had always thought he understood such emotions better than anyone, yet he failed to notice it in the person closest to him…

“…It’s not too late. I can still…!”

Just as Leo was about to intervene, the other Leonardo pointed a sword at her throat.

“I won, right?”

“Yes… I lost…”

Her face was filled with the deep-seated humiliation of defeat.

“Then…”

Suddenly, the fake Leonardo threw his sword aside.

‘…What the hell…? Why did he…?’

Then, the fake Leonardo grabbed her wrists.

“Wait… What are you… Leo…! Huh…!”

Like a beast, he pinned her down, holding her wrists as he restrained her body. He then positioned himself between her waist and lower body, making it increasingly difficult for her to escape.

“Le…! Leo…! This…! What are you…!”

“Why? You don’t want to?”

He didn’t want to imagine what the fake Leo was implying, but he feared the worst.

“…It’s… it’s not that I don’t want to… but… this feels… we should be dating first… before… haah…!”

The fake Leonardo softly bit the nape of Arias’s neck, awakening her senses with a heated intensity. The sensation of his hot tongue brushing against her skin was overwhelmingly stimulating for the innocent girl.

“Only the winner gets to make the choice, honey.”

“…H-Honey…?! Hah…ngh…!”

Under the control of the false beast, Arias slowly began to shed her hidden inhibitions.

‘Goddamn it… What the hell…’

That was the reaction of the real Leonardo upon witnessing this shocking scene.